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The differences between stylists and fashion designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a stylist, becoming a fashion designer takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a fashion designer has an average salary of $54,265, which is higher than the $37,985 average annual salary of a stylist.
The top three skills for a stylist include good time management, POS and data entry. The most important skills for a fashion designer are fashion design, sketch, and apparel.
| Stylist | Fashion Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $37,985 | $54,265 |
| Hourly rate | $18.26 | $26.09 |
| Growth rate | 11% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 49,296 | 49,476 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 4 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Average age | 40 | 37 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A stylist is responsible for providing fashion advice, choosing the appropriate clothing for models, maintaining the fashion style, and supervising photoshoots. Stylists must always be updated with the latest fashion trends for recommendations. A stylist must have excellent communication skills to connect with various brand management and fashion stores for purchasing items or inquiring about clothing collections. In some cases, stylists are usually consulted by a team of the fashion brand to give inputs on the appropriate style, including color schemes and overall design.
Fashion designers design and assist with the making of shoes, accessories, and clothing. They identify trends and styles, colors, and trims of a clothing collection. The designers keep an eye on travel shows and read fashion magazines to spot trends and interpret specific patterns, color palettes, and prints for each season. They sketch designs by hand, address buyers as a seasoned marketer, and create technical production drawings. It is part of their responsibilities to collaborate with team members to make edits to lines, select seasonal themes, and create new concepts.
Stylists and fashion designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Stylist | Fashion Designer | |
| Average salary | $37,985 | $54,265 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $53,000 | Between $37,000 And $78,000 |
| Highest paying City | Denver, CO | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | Nevada |
| Best paying company | Columbia International University | Ralph Lauren |
| Best paying industry | Hospitality | Retail |
There are a few differences between a stylist and a fashion designer in terms of educational background:
| Stylist | Fashion Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 40% | Bachelor's Degree, 61% |
| Most common major | Cosmetology | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | - | Cornell University |
Here are the differences between stylists' and fashion designers' demographics:
| Stylist | Fashion Designer | |
| Average age | 40 | 37 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 13.6% Female, 86.4% | Male, 17.3% Female, 82.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.9% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 8.1% White, 59.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 7.3% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.9% Asian, 11.6% White, 63.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 12% | 18% |